1. Field of the Invention
This Invention relates to an optical apparatus including an imaging device using an extended surface optical element and a variable optical-property reflecting mirror, or including a variable optical-property element, a variable optical-property mirror, or a combination of the variable optical-property element with the variable optical-property mirror.
2. Description of Related Art
For a conventional, variable optical-property element such as a variable focal-length lens or a variable focal-length lens, a description will be given of the variable focal-length lens as an example. In an optical system, an extended surface optical element may be used. The extended surface of the extended surface optical element refers to any surface which has a shape such as a spherical, planar, or rotational symmetrical aspherical surface; a spherical, planar, or rotational symmetrical aspherical surface which is decentered with respect to the optical axis; an aspherical surface with symmetrical surfaces; an aspherical surface with only one symmetrical surface; an aspherical surface with no symmetrical surface; a free-formed surface; a surface with a nondifferentiable point or line; etc. In optical systems having used optical elements with the extended surfaces, an optical system utilizing the reflection of the extended surface has the merit that chromatic aberration is not produced. This optical system, however, has the disadvantage that in the case where the shape of the extended surface is abnormal, when the optical element is moved for zooming and focusing operations, a mechanical structure such as a moving mechanism becomes complicated.
A conventional digital camera, as shown in FIG. 1, has been manufactured by assembling components such as plastic lenses PL, a stop D, a solenoid FS for focusing, a shutter S, a charge-coupled solid-state image sensor CCD, a signal processing circuit PC, and a memory M. Consequently, the number of parts is increased and an assembly becomes troublesome. Thus, there are limits to a compact design, accuracy improvement, and cost reduction of the camera.
Furthermore, in general, the plastic lens has a tendency that its refractive index and shape change with temperature and humidity, and thus imaging performance is degraded by temperature change. In this way, glass lenses are chiefly used, and a lightweight design, accuracy improvement, and cost reduction of the camera are highly limited.
It is, therefore, a primary object of the present invention to provide an optical system including an optical element with a extended surface and a variable optical-property reflecting mirror.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an imaging device having the above optical system and an image sensor.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide an observing device or an optical finder having the above optical system and a display element.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an optical apparatus including an electronic imaging system and an electronic display system, used in a digital camera, an electronic endoscope, a PDA (personal digital assistant), a video telephone, a VTR camera, or a TV camera, which is capable of achieving a compact design and cost reduction by integrally constructing parts such as an image sensor and an optical element through the technique, for example, of lithography, or including a platelike unit constituting a part of the above elements.
It is a still further object of the present invention to provide an optical apparatus capable of compensating for a change of imaging or optical performance by temperature and humidity, for example, a digital camera, an electronic endoscope, a PDA, a video telephone, a VTR camera, a TV camera, a film camera, a microscope, a laser scanning microscope, a bar-code scanner, a bar-code reader, or a pick-up device for optical disks.
The optical system of the present invention includes extended surfaces and a variable optical-property reflecting mirror.
The imaging device of the present invention is provided with an optical element having extended surfaces, a variable optical-property reflecting mirror, and an image sensor so that the reflecting mirror and the image sensor are placed on the same substrate, and the whole or a part of the reflecting mirror and the optical element having the extended surfaces constitutes an optical system.
The imaging device of the present invention is provided with an optical element having extended surfaces and a variable optical-property reflecting mirror so that the reflecting mirror is placed close to one surface of the optical element.
The optical apparatus of the present invention is such that a ray of light following the direction of image formation or observation has a helical relationship with a ray of light entering an image sensor or the eye.
The optical apparatus of the resent invention is provided with an extended surface prism in which a ray of light incident on the extended surface prism has a helical relationship with a ray of light emerging from the extended surface prism.
The optical apparatus of the present invention has a moving optical element comprised of an optical element and an actuator, including a lithography process in a fabrication process.
The optical apparatus of the present invention has at least one of an optical element, a shutter, a stop, and a display element, and an image sensor on a single substrate.
The optical apparatus of the present invention has at least two of an optical element, a shutter, a stop, a display element, and an image sensor on a single substrate.
The optical apparatus of the present invention has at least one of an image sensor, an optical element, a shutter, and a stop, and a display element on a single substrate.
The optical apparatus of the present invention includes a variable optical-property element.
The optical apparatus of the present invention includes a variable optical-property mirror. According to the present invention, the variable optical-property mirror is comprised of a combination of a variable optical-property lens with a mirror.
These and other objects as well as the features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.